Google first released their 3D Ocean feature in Google Earth more than five years ago, and it’s something that has seen steady improvements over the years. Here are some of the more interesting recent developments:
USS Mohawk, shipwreck by Trident Imaging
(via + Google Ocean Program)
Catlin Seaview Survey & Google Ocean at the 2014 Economist World Summit
From Google themselves, here’s more of what they’ve launched with Underwater Earth recently:
We are happy to announce 7 new underwater street view collects off Monaco and Mexico, including whale sharks and coral reefs in partnership with Australian non profit partner Underwater Earth’s “Catlin Seaview Survey” and launched in honor of the Economist Ocean Summit, where Prince Albert II of Monaco dove below Rocher Saint Nicolas virtually using the new Liquid Galaxy videowall. We also released the first ever San Francisco shoreline imagery collected from the water in partnership with Marine Advanced Research by placing a Google trekker camera atop the stable autonomousWAM-V® USV robot. Underwater Earth aims to reveal the reefs with more to explore at maps.google.com/ocean.
There have been some amazing developments to Google Ocean over the years, and it’s only getting better. What’s your favorite feature so far?
About Mickey Mellen
Mickey has been using Google Earth since it was released in 2005, and has created a variety of geo-related sites including Google Earth Hacks. He runs a web design firm in Marietta, GA, where he lives with his wife and two kids.
I would have to say that my favorite feature is the Trieste sub (45° 38′ 55″ North, 13° 46′ 48″ East.) Don Walsh actually showed it to me in Google’s Liquid Galaxy during a Hangout on Air a few years ago, pretty cool!
I can spend hours drifting through Google Ocean simply looking at the various connections between one aspect of our blue world and another. The colours captivate me before I even start, since I’m a visual creature and there’s something about the colour blue!
My personal favourite parts of Google Ocean are related to Explore the Ocean. I love the little icons that, with a click, reveal through images and videos all sorts of fascinating stories. Some are familiar and remind me of why I love diving so much. Others inspire me to such an extent that I’m compelled to add that destination to my ever-growing wish list of places I want to explore myself.
As an Ocean’s contributor, I’m always on the lookout for interesting and worthwhile content to write about and photograph. It’s a passion I love sharing and in the same way, I enjoy reading and learning about all aspects related to our underwater world. Sometimes, it’s the random collective, the far-away connections that bring us closer to understanding our amazing planet.
Blue Skies,
Laura Storm
I love exploring Google Ocean’s content. Google is creating the biggest library of our planet. I think it would be great to have time machine type of interactive search throughout the contents within the same location. I would love to see contents being created for the same spot in 50-100 years and on. It will be the Alexander Library of Planet Earth.
Typo. Library of Alexandria.